I Was Thinking... Questionable Learning

Growing up, I was a child of early television programming. My view of the world was influenced by what I saw in the shows I watched. As I look back now, I’m sure this exposure explains a lot about my lack of critical thinking skills. Watching early TV is a lot like looking at Facebook to get your news. Both give you information but rarely is it a true picture of reality.
The multitude of westerns that filled the early airwaves romanticized the old west and demonstrated how you settled disputes: you shot it out on main street. Not exactly the non-violent approach we try to teach children today.
Even some of the heroes were of questionable character. Matt Dillon, the Dodge City Marshall, seemed to spend an awful lot of time in the Long Branch Saloon with a dubious lady known only as Kitty. While the men of Bonanza did not have too many gun fights, you also had to wonder about their dysfunctional family.
Three adult sons, all with different mothers, still living at home with their father, might raise some concerns by today’s standards. And did you ever wonder what happened to the mothers in the Andy Griffith Show, My Three Sons, or the Rifleman? Why didn’t we demand an explanation? But early TV raised a lot of other questions.
One of my favorite adventure series was Superman. The man of steel was a hero that always was at the right place to save the day. But did you ever wonder, when he changed into Superman, why did he do it in a phone booth? Most of the ones I’ve seen are made of glass. Didn’t anyone ever see mild mannered Clark Kent changing?
And once he flew out to save the day, weren’t there a lot of phone booths around with a bunch of clothes laying on the floor? Did he ever go back and get his clothes, or did he just keep buying the same style suit? Another thing, how dumb really was Lois Lane. Despite numerous encounters with Superman, didn’t she ever catch on that she never saw him and Clark Kent at the same time? Since the only difference in facial features between the two was that Clark wore glasses, did this “reporter” never put it together?
Another question that I wonder about was Superman’s power to stop a speeding bullet. If bullets just bounced off his chest, when the frustrated criminal ran out of bullets and just threw his gun at Superman, why did the man of steel duck, instead of letting it bounce off?
Apparently, we were so enamored by early programming that we never stopped to question anything about the situation we were watching. Gilligan’s Island was a popular sitcom for a long time. This unlikely group were stranded on an island for years.
They demonstrated an ability to adapt to almost every new crisis week after week. The Professor was even skilled enough to create electricity from a coconut, but nobody ever really thought about finding a way to fix the boat.
We accepted many situations without question. Did you ever wonder why the Beverly Hillbillies moved from their shack in the hills into a big mansion but with all their money they never went out and bought a better vehicle to drive?
Did you ever wonder about Tarzan, the ape man, who lived in the wilds of the jungle and could communicate with the animals but barely talk with other humans? If he had such limited contact with the outside world, where did he get the razors to be so clean shaven?
However, what does that say about us. We accepted a show where a housewife /witch could wiggle her nose and cast spells, a horse that could talk, and a genie that lived in a bottle and was named Jeannie. And even the shows with model families raise some questions. What kind of parents actually give their son a nickname of Beaver?
Did You Ever Wonder? — If humans evolved from monkeys and apes, why are there still monkeys and apes?